A 14-year-old boy, Sulaiman Abubakar has been apprehended by security officers at the Lekan Salami Sports Complex, Adamasingba in Ibadan, Oyo State capital, for allegedly stealing cables valued at N300,000 from the main bowl of the stadium.
Commissioner for Youth and Sports in the state, Wasilat Adegoke who disclosed this in Ibadan after visiting the stadium for the on-the-spot assessment of the damage caused by the theft, urged the staff of the state sports council to be more vigilant.
She stressed that the security at the stadium must be the responsibility of all stakeholders.
The Commissioner, however, pledged that the state government would strengthen the security network of the sports complex to guide against future occurrences.
Abubakar, a Junior Secondary School (JSS 2) student of Eleyele High School in Ibadan, confessed that he gained entrance into the main bowl of the stadium during the training session of Shooting Star Football Club of Ibadan (3SC), adding that he slept in one of the rooms overnight after the security officers securely locked all entrances to the stadium.
During interrogations, the boy confirmed that he had broken the pipes with a big stone to cut the camera cables and wires that connected the canopy light. He also admitted that he planned to sell it. The mother of the boy, a resident of the Sabo area of Ibadan, who fainted on seeing his son in handcuffs and was revived by the workers at the stadium, said that she penalised Sulaiman for offending her the previous night.
The officers at the Stadium Police Post have transferred the case to the Mokola Police Station for further action.
